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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · mine · branch · pitcher · coach · wake · fan · saw

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wake — a trail
  11. saw — the tool
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. branch — a division
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pitcher — in baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com